ARTICLES

ENGLISH – GRADE 7
 INDEFINITE ARTICLE - A
 Before a singular word that begins with a consonant. (a doctor)

 Before a word beginning with a vowel that gives a consonant sound. (a university)

  Before a singular countable noun when it is mentioned for the first time.

(He bought a new car. It looks nice.)

 Before half when it follows a whole number, otherwise after half. 

( one and a half pages, half a day)

 Before a proper noun to point out on unfamiliar person, or if we want to give a special
meaning to a name. 

(A Sumit Mahajan called last evening.)

 INDEFINITE ARTICLE - A
 With an expression of quantity (a lot of time)

 With certain number (a five rupee note)

 In exclamation before nouns (such a mess!)

 USES OF INDEFINITE
ARTICLES - AN

  Before a word beginning with a vowel. (an

umbrella)

 Before a word that begins with a silent 'h' (an hour)

 Before individual letters that have a vowel sound (an

MA student)
 USES OF DEFINITE ARTICLE –
THE 
 Before things that are one of a kind. (the Sun, the Moon)

 When we refer to a particular thing. (The Chandrayaan went to the

Moon.)

 Before a noun that has already been referred to before 

(A child bought a new umbrella. The child lost the umbrella in a park.)

 Before ordinals that are used as adjectives (the first book)

 When a singular noun is used to talk about the whole group 

(The whale is the largest mammal on the Earth.)

 OMMISION OF ARTICLES
 Articles are not used before:

1. the names of people in most cases

• Mr John F Kennedy, MS Dhoni

2. the names of continents, countries (most of them), states, cities and towns

• Asia, Holland, Bihar, Lucknow, Ghaziabad

3. the names of days and months

• Friday, Monday, July

4. the names of seasons, languages, subjects, body parts, games

• spring, Japanese, Economics, nails, cricket

 REPETITION OF ARTICLES 
1. When two or more adjectives describe the same noun and are connected by 'and' the article is
used only before the first adjective.

• Here is a red and yellow flower.

2. When two or more adjectives describe different nouns, the article is used before each adjective.

• Both the outer and the inner walls of the castle were carefully guarded.

3. When two or more nouns refer to the same subject, the article is usually u-

• Mr Jain is the treasurer and chairman of our club.

 REPETITION OF ARTICLES 
4. When two or more nouns refer to different subjects, the article is used before each noun. 

• The parents and the teachers of the children were called to the meeting.

5. When comparing, if two nouns refer to the same subject, the article is used before the
first noun. 

• Napoleon Bonaparte was a greater soldier than statesman.